Egg & ego

by J. M. W. Slack

Egg and Ego is a lighthearted look at the nature of academic science. It is intended for anyone interested in biology but particularly for biology students who want to find out what is in store for them in the future. It starts with an account of one particular experiment, which is later opened out to introduce the excitement arising from recent progress in associated areas of biology. It then describes the everyday aspects of scientific work, ignored by philosophers of science. These range from cleaning up radioactive contamination, to how to fill in biohazard forms, to how newly appointed professors bargain for money. The "Egg" of the title refers to the science of developmental biology, which is the specialty of the author, and which provides the material for many of the anecdotes. The "Ego" relates to the vanity of the scientists themselves. Academic scientists have to struggle to maintain their research funding. To do this they must persuade other scientists that they are very goo